“We are at another inflection point in California policy,” said Howard Wenger of SunPower Corp., an AEE board member. With legislation pending across the street in the Capitol to raise California’s already high standards for renewable energy and building efficiency, and adding a target of cutting petroleum use in half, all by 2030, what better context could there be for AEE’s third annual “Pathway to 2050” conference? The capacity crowd of nearly 400 gathered in the Sacramento Convention Center got a full sense of that inflection point – and the stakes for industry growth – from key policy makers and business leaders in a full day of dialogue and networking on August 20.

Melanie Kenderdine, Director of the Office of Energy and Policy Analysis and Energy Counselor to the Secretary of the Department of Energy (DOE), joined advanced energy business leaders for a breakfast discussion hosted by AEE on March 19. Kenderdine shared insights around the Quadrennial Energy Review (QER), a multi-year process that will offer a comprehensive outlook on both federal and state energy policy moving forward.

Early this year, President Barack Obama issued a Presidential Memorandum establishing the QER Task Force. “Affordable, clean, and secure energy and energy services are essential for improving U.S. economic productivity, enhancing our quality of life, protecting the environment, and ensuring our Nation’s security,” Obama noted in the memo. “Achieving these goals requires a comprehensive and integrated energy strategy resulting from interagency dialogue and active engagement of external stakeholders.” The task force is co-chaired by John Holdren, the Director of the Office of Science and Technology Policy, and Dan Utech, Special Assistant to the President for Energy and Climate Change.

On November 6, Advanced Energy Economy hosted Heather Zichal, President Obama’s Deputy Assistant for Energy and Climate Change, at a breakfast for advanced energy business leaders, including AEE members. It was one of her final appearances as the President’s closest advisor on issues central to the advanced energy industry’s continued growth. In reflecting on her five years on the job, Zichal said the administration has accomplished more than was expected, but will need help from the advanced energy industry at the state and federal level to meet the challenges of the future.

On October 16, Hemant Taneja, board chairman of AEE and managing director of General Catalyst Partners, took the stage twice at GreenBiz’s VERGE Conference in San Francisco. Focusing on the “21st Century Electricity System,” Taneja delivered a “VERGE talk” in the morning and moderated a panel in the afternoon – both drawing on AEE’s invitation-only forum series on the same topic.

“We stand at the threshold of an enormous economic opportunity,” declared Graham Richard, CEO of Advanced Energy Economy (AEE), as he opened the “Pathway to 2050” Conference in Sacramento on August 20. “We can’t wait for Washington to provide the answers. California must lead the way.”